Sign up for news updates

Annual Meeting

Frequently Asked Questions :
Account

What are abandoned property/escheatment rules and how do they apply to me?

States are looking at inactive mutual fund accounts as possible abandoned property. If you have not initiated contact or had activity in your account for a while, it could be at risk of being forfeited to your state government.

“Escheatment” is the process of a state government claiming that “abandoned property” should belong to the state. Different states have different rules, but a general rule is that if a mutual fund account holder does not contact the mutual fund company within the “dormancy period,” then the mutual fund account is abandoned property that can be escheated to the state. See below for a list of all states and the current “dormancy periods” for mutual fund accounts. Mutual fund accounts may also be considered abandoned property if the account has uncashed checks or if the US Post Office concludes that mail to the account holder is undeliverable. Please note that these state laws can change with short notice.

To avoid escheatment, we strongly encourage all Weitz Funds shareholders to contact us at least once each year to review their account information. It’s also important to promptly notify us of any name or address changes.

You can contact us by logging into your account and viewing your holdings. We will “capture” this activity as proof that you have initiated contact with us. Please note that under abandoned property laws, “contact” requires more than visiting our public website, or establishing a systematic investment or withdrawal plan. You can also contact us by calling Client Services at 800-304-0745, Monday through Friday between 8:00 am to 4:30 pm Central time.

The information above is provided for reference only. For more information regarding the abandoned property laws of your State, please review your State Treasurer’s website.

When do the funds pay distributions?

Value, Partners Value, Partners III Opportunity, Hickory and Balanced Funds typically pay distributions in June and December. Short Duration Income, Core Plus Income and Nebraska Tax-Free Income Funds usually pay distributions in March, June, September and December.

Why do the funds pay distributions?

To avoid federal taxation, mutual funds must distribute all of their dividends and capital gains each year. All interest and dividends received from the securities in the portfolio, minus expenses, are passed through to shareholders as income. Gains realized from selling securities that have been held less than a year are paid out as short-term capital gains. Gains realized from securities held for more than a year are passed through to shareholders as long-term capital gains, which are taxed at a lower rate.

Why do distributions cause fund prices to go down?

To understand how mutual fund distributions work, there are several dates to note. The "record date" is the date that we determine how much each shareholder is entitled to receive. The "ex-dividend" date is the first date that a shareholder purchasing shares will not be entitled to the distribution. Lastly, there is the "pay date," which is the date the dividend is actually paid to shareholders. This date is also known as the "reinvestment date" because most mutual fund shareholders reinvest their distribution in additional shares. In the case of Weitz Funds, we set the "ex-date" and the "pay date" on the same day.

A mutual fund's NAV is composed of capital paid in by purchasing shareholders and accumulation of income and gains that have not yet been distributed to shareholders. When a fund makes a distribution of accumulated income and gains, the fund's NAV decreases by the amount of the distribution per share. In other words, since the distribution has been paid out to shareholders it can no longer be included in the fund's NAV. For example, assume that a mutual fund, which has an NAV of $20 today (the record day), declares a distribution of $2 with an "ex-date" and "pay date" of tomorrow. Shareholders owning the fund today will be entitled to the distribution and shareholders purchasing the fund tomorrow (ex-dividend) will not receive the distribution.

Suppose that you held 1,500 shares of the fund on the record date, with a market value of $30,000. You would receive $3,000 ($2 per share x 1,500 shares) in distributions on the pay date. Your 1,500 shares would now be worth $27,000. If you reinvested your distribution, your $3,000.00 would purchase an additional 166.667 ($3,000/$18 per share) shares on the pay date. Your new share balance would be 1,666.667, still with a market value of $30,000. The shareholder purchasing shares of the fund on the ex-date will buy shares at $18 (ignoring any fluctuation in NAV attributable to market activity).

Even when distributions are reinvested, shareholders pay taxes on the amounts they receive. Of course, if you own an IRA or other tax-advantaged account, you do not pay taxes on distributions reinvested in the tax-advantaged account.

How does Weitz Funds keep shareholders informed?

Everyone at Weitz Funds is invested right alongside you. So we want to be as responsive as possible – especially in times of market trouble. At the same time, our portfolio managers best serve you by focusing on investing, and fast-moving markets and rapidly changing conditions may make it hard for our Client Services representatives to get you a personally researched answer that’s still accurate. So here’s what we can do to best address your concerns:

Forward your questions and concerns to the portfolio managers so they can try to incorporate answers into their quarterly letters

Have informed Client Services representatives available to listen to and discuss your questions and concerns, and keep the portfolio managers informed about those concerns

When and where is Weitz Funds' annual shareholder information meeting?

Each year in May, Weitz Funds holds an informational meeting for shareholders. There is usually no formal business to conduct, so the entire meeting is devoted to a short presentation and answering your questions. You can ask the portfolio managers and investment staff questions during the meeting, or you can call in or email your questions to us in advance.

You should receive a note with your March 31 statement each year reminding you about the meeting. The note will include the meeting specifics, including the date, time and location, along with a map and driving directions to the Scott Conference Center. If you are not a direct client of Weitz Funds but would like to attend the meeting, maps and driving directions are also available from our Client Services representatives.

Why does Weitz Funds have two mailing addresses, one in Kansas City and one in Omaha?

Weitz Funds' business office is located in Omaha, Nebraska. All Client Services phone calls and emails are answered by Client Services staff in Omaha.

Boston Financial Data Services (BFDS), located in Kansas City, is the sub-transfer agent for the funds. Generally all correspondence, including applications, address change requests, IRA Withdrawal forms, checks for purchases,* etc., should be mailed to BFDS in Kansas City. Once a piece of mail is received in Kansas City, it is scanned into our computer system to be processed in Omaha.

BFDS also mails trade confirmations and quarterly statements to all shareholders who invest directly with Weitz Funds.

Occasionally you may receive a business reply envelope with the Omaha address on it, included with a form you requested. There may be certain situations where a Client Services representative deems it more beneficial for you to mail a particular piece of correspondence directly to their attention at the Omaha address, rather than to Kansas City.

*Please note that any checks received directly by the funds at the business address in Omaha will be forwarded by overnight mail to BFDS, and will be processed when they are received by BFDS.

Shareholders who hold our funds through a brokerage account may not be receiving our quarterly reports. Shareholder reports are posted to our website approximately three to four weeks after each calendar quarter. If you would like to receive a paper copy, please contact a Client Services representative at 800-304-9745 or 401-391-1980, or use our secure contact form.

Information provided on this website is intended only for persons who are eligible to purchase U.S.-registered investment funds. Nothing contained on this website should be considered a solicitation to buy or an offer to sell shares of any of the Weitz Funds in any jurisdiction where such solicitation or offer would be unlawful under the securities laws of such jurisdiction.

The Weitz Funds are offered only by our
Prospectus.
Our
Prospectus
contains more complete information concerning the management fees and expenses of the Weitz Funds. Please read the Prospectus carefully before you invest or send money. Remember that there can be no assurance that the investment objective of any mutual fund will be achieved.

We have detected that you are currently using the Windows XP operating system. Our Account Access system no longer allows access to users with Windows XP due to security issues. If you feel
you have received this message in error or would like assistance please contact us at 800-304-9745 or alternately you may visit our
Contact Page for further contact instructions.